Jurisdictions

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In a recent decision by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the court held that, despite the confidential nature of arbitration proceedings, a party seeking to confirm an arbitration award in court must establish some justifiable reason as to why the award and any documents filed in conjunction with the petition to confirm should remain confidential in order to overcome the strong presumption against sealing judicial records and prevent public access. 

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Read More New York Federal Court Finds That Arbitration Awards Should Not Be Sealed

Barney Frank (D-MA), Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and Paul E. Kanjorski (D-PA), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises, recently sent an open letter to SEC Chairman Christopher Cox urging the SEC to take action concerning auction rate securities. 

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Read More Auction Rate Securities: Prominent Congressmen Urge SEC To Take Action

The legislation listed below is under consideration for inclusion on a future Assembly Insurance Committee agenda. In order to gather input on these bills, all interested parties are invited to offer comments in support or opposition to the bills listed below. Suggestions for proposed language changes are also welcome at this time. 

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Read More Requests for Comments on Proposed Legislation from New York State Assembly Committee on Insurance

The Mississippi Supreme Court has been asked, for the first time, to interpret the antic-concurrent causation clause in a homeowners’ insurance policy.  An anti-concurrent causation clause (“ACC clause”) generally provides that if a loss arises from a combination of covered and non-covered perils, the entirety of the loss is excluded from coverage. …
Read More Katrina: Mississippi Supreme Court Is Asked to Interpret a Homeowners’ Policy’s Anti-Concurrent Causation Clause

Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons recently announced that Nevada Insurance Commissioner Alice A. Molasky-Arman will retire on September 7, 2008.  Molasky-Arman was appointed in 1995 and served under three different governors, making her the longest serving insurance commissioner in Nevada history. …
Read More Nevada Insurance Commissioner Alice A. Molasky-Arman to Retire

On Thursday, May 8th at 1:00 PM (EST), attorneys from Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge’s Securities and Government Enforcement team will present a webcast entitled:  What The Subprime/Credit Crisis Means For Your Company as part of the ongoing Association of Corporate Counsel webcast series. 

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Read More Webcast: What The Subprime/Credit Crisis Means For Your Company

In a March 3, 2008 decision, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted a motion to dismiss for improper venue.  See Aguas Lenders Recovery Group, LLC v. Suez S.A., Sociedad General De Aguas De Barcelona, S.A., and Agua y Saneamientos Argentinos S.A., Case No. 06 Civ. 7873 (RLC).    The Court noted that the plaintiff could not hold defendant liable for forum waivers, where defendant was not a party to the relevant agreements and did not even exist when the agreements were created. …
Read More Non-Signatory To Agreement Containing Forum Waiver Clause Cannot Be Held Liable For Forum Waiver

Janice Kupukaa filed a medical practice lawsuit against Kaiser Permanente (“Kaiser”), a medical facility, and other entities and individuals in Hawaii state court.  Kaiser was insured under primary insurances policies issued by Texas Farmers Insurance Company (“Texas Farmers”), which covered the period of 4/9/99-4/9/00, 4/9/00-4/9/01 and 4/9/01-4/9/02, respectively. 

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Read More Reinsurer Has No Obligation to Contribute to Settlement Where Reinsured Excess Policy Was Not Triggered

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania recently held that plaintiff, who first initiated arbitration against the defendant’s subsidiary but then commenced a lawsuit against its parent, must establish the subsidiary’s liability in arbitration before filing any claims that purport to pierce the subsidiary’s corporate veil. 

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Read More Court Reinforces Federal Policy Favoring Arbitration